Monday, November 20, 2017

"Oslo in November. The first snow of the season has fallen. A boy named Jonas wakes in the night to find his mother gone. Out his window, in the cold moonlight, he sees the snowman that inexplicably appeared in the yard earlier in the day. Around its neck is his mother’s pink scarf.

"Hole suspects a link between a menacing letter he’s received and the disappearance of Jonas’s mother—and of perhaps a dozen other women, all of whom went missing on the day of a first snowfall. As his investigation deepens, something else emerges: he is becoming a pawn in an increasingly terrifying game whose rules are devised—and constantly revised—by the killer."

Review

Snowman is an excellent,
suspenseful read, with its corkscrew/character-centered plot twists, masterful
pacing and engaging [or chilling] characters. Not only that, it sets up a
possible future foe for Hole to tangle with! Followed by The Leopard.

#

Tomas Alfredson directed the resulting film, which was released stateside on October 20, 2017. Peter Straughan, Hossein Amini, and Søren Sveistrup wrote the screenplay.

(pb; 1971)From the back cover"It began as a mistake." By middle age, Henry Chinaski has lost more than twelve years of his life to the U.S. Postal Service. In a world where his three true, bitter pleasures are women, booze, and racetrack betting, he somehow drags his hangover out of bed every dawn to lug waterlogged mailbags up mud-soaked mountains, outsmart vicious guard dogs, and pray to survive the day-to-day trials of sadistic bosses and certifiable coworkers.

This classic 1971 novel--the one that catapulted its author to national fame--is the perfect introduction to the grimly hysterical world of legendary writer, poet, and Dirty Old Man Charles Bukowski and his fictional alter ego, Chinaski.ReviewBukowski’s
first, semi-autographical novel is a lusty, drunken and don’t-give-a-frak politically
incorrect work that often made me laugh out loud. In it, Henry Chinaski drinks too much, loves and fraks numerous women, and
sometimes works at the US Post Office. Post
is a book that – had it come out today – would have been protested for its raw,
honest and sometimes ugly depictions of a ne’er-do-well whose heart is evident
even as he acts like a don’t-give-a-damn bastard. Excellent, focused and
landmark with its humor and outlook, this is one of my all-time favorite reads.
It is not recommended for the politically correct, the otherwise easily
offended, those certain of their purity, and those who are oh-so-certain that there are no gray areas in life.

"After being bitten by an irradiated spider, young Peter Parker learned he had gained the proportional strength and agility of a spider. Combined with a keen "spider-sense" that warned him of danger, Peter became the hero we all know and love...Spider-Man! In this great volume, Peter will face some of his greatest challenges and overcome some of his most harrowing foes. Adventure at its best, true believer!"

Overall review

Volume 4 is a fun, action-oriented
and youth-angsty read. There is less melodrama than usual in these issues – “frail”
Aunt May still dotes too much on Peter, and he still does dumb things (even
for someone his age) that make little sense. Also, there is the issue of
the oh-so-sexist issue #86 with Black Widow, and the occasional, silly filler
issue (e.g., Annual #5). This is a worthwhile graphic novel, if you can
overlook the above elements, as the artwork – as always – is top-notch. Followed by Vol. 5.

Story arcs

"The Madness of Mysterio” and
“To Squash a Spider” (#67-68):
Spider-Man gets shrunk and tries to elude death in a trap-rigged mini-amusement
park.

“Crisis on the Campus” (#68) – “The Speedster and the Spider” (#71):
Spider-Man is publicly accused of being in cahoots with the Kingpin, who tries
to steal an ancient and priceless tablet. This leads to skirmishes with the
cops and Quicksilver (who is trying to acquit himself and his wife, the Scarlet
Witch, of unrelated false charges).

"The Parents of Peter Parker” (Annual #5): Peter
accidentally discovers what really killed his parents – and what they were. Red
Skull, from the comic book Captain
America, makes an appearance. This storyline and inclusion of Red Skull
feels silly and shoe-horned, the admixture of two unlikely elements. Still,
there is plenty of action.

“Rocked By the Shocker” (#72) – “In the Blaze of Battle” (#77): More
mayhem ensues, centered around that ancient tablet, issues #68–71. The Shocker,
whose last appearance was in issue #46,takes the tablet, with the intention of ransoming it. Before long,
others are caught up in the conflict between Spider-Man and the Shocker: the
Maggia (mobsters), including the hard-punching Man-Mountain Marko; Dr. Curt
Connors, a.k.a. the Lizard; Johnny Storm, a.k.a. the Human Torch. . . This is
Man-Mountain Marko’s first appearance in the Spider-Man comics. The Lizard last appeared in issue #45.

“The Night of the Prowler” and “To Prowl No More!” (#78–79): A desperate,
down-on-his-luck window washer (Hobie Brown) turns his hand to thieving via a
costumed alter ego, the Prowler. When his path crosses Spider-Man’s, they fight
for a brief time. Also, Peter Parker stews about Gwen Stacy, whom he mistakenly
thinks has dumped him.

“On
the Trail of the Chameleon!” (#80): Spider-Man battles the Chameleon, who steals
an expensive painting. The Chameleon was last seen in issue #2.

“The Coming of the Kangaroo!”(#81) A
misunderstood man with the ability to leap about like a kangaroo finds himself
at odds with Spider-Man.

“And Then Came Electro!” (#82): Electro, out of prison and working as an
electrician, battles Spider-Man on live television. Electro is aided in his vengeful
desire by Daily Bugler publisher J.
Jonah Jameson, whose laser-focus hatred of the web-slinger once again comes
into play. . . Electro was last seen in comic’s first annual Spider-Man issue.

“The Coming of the Schemer!” (#83) – “The Secret of the Schemer!” (#85) Two
events reawaken the violent impulses of Wilson Fisk (a.k.a. the Kingpin) –
first, the news that his wife, Vanessa, has discovered that their son (Richard) is likely dead; and second, the clamorous appearance of the Schemer, a new
mobster-esque villain whose main aim to take over the criminal empire that Fisk
abandoned, after the debacle involving a priceless, ancient tablet (issues #68–71).

“Beware. . . the Black Widow!” (#86):
Spider-Man crosses paths with the ex-Avenger and ex-agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Of
course, a minor fight takes place before they finally talk and sort out their misunderstanding.Even
by the standards of the late Sixties, there is an underlying sexism that exists
within the boy-centric tone of the Amazing
Spider-Man universe. All of the female characters – “frail” Aunt May, Mary
Jane Watson, Gwen Stacy (with their catty rivalry) and the Black widow – are
all, in one way or another, reliant on a man or his approval. Black Widow is an
egregious example of this, as three characters (including Black Widow herself) refers to the ex-Avenger as a “copy” of Spider-Man, with her huge identity
crisis. (Black Widow, with her powers, battle style and outlook, is not derivative of the web-slinger.) I
have not noted this in earlier reviews of The
Amazing Spider-Man because few, if any previous issues, were so
in-your-face sexist (to my knowledge).“Unmasked At Last!” (#87): Peter,
feverish with a mystery illness, reveals his alter ego to his friends at a
party. He seeksmedical help. Hobie
Brown, once the Prowler [#78–79], makes an appearance.“The Arms of Doctor Octopus!” and “Doc Ock Lives!” (#88–89): Doctor Octopus escapes from prison,
hijacks a plane and creates general havoc – often while battling Spider-Man, of
course. Be warned that this last issue-chapter of Vol. 4 ends on a cliffhanger situation.Followed by Marvel Essential: The Amazing Spider-Man Volume 5.

Friday, November 03, 2017

"A 14-year old girl is raped at one of the Salvation Army summer camps. Twelve years later, at a Christmas concert in a square in Oslo, a Salvation Army soldier is executed by a man in the crowd. A press photographer has caught a suspect on one of the photos of the concert. Beate Lønn, the identification expert, is confused by how the face can change from one photo to the next. Inspector Harry Hole’s search for the faceless man takes place on the seamy side of the city, among those who seek eternal – or just momentary – redemption. And the gunman has not yet completed his mission."

Review

Redeemer is an excellent,
hard-to-put-down police procedural/suspense book, one with lots of effective,
character-centric twists and nuanced revelations (relating to the ongoing
storyline about Tom Waaler, dealt with in The Devil'Star,and corruption within the police
department). It is a novel worth owning. Followed by The Snowman.